School-Based Coaching and the Text Based Seminar

Toni Enloe
Mar 23, 2009

The responsibilities of school-based coaches are often broad and specific to a school's needs and culture. After interviewing many coaches and reviewing the roles and responsibilities of the coaching position from various school districts, Learning-Focused researchers have identified several common goals. Those include:

  • Assisting teachers in efficient, effective instructional decision making through reflective practice and planning

  • Accelerating the use of exemplary practices in instruction

  • Promoting teamwork and the use of data for planning

  • Accelerating positive change through collaborative relationships based on trust and mutual respect
    (Learning-Focused School-Based Coaching)

The use of Text-Based Seminars is an excellent way to provide professional development, create an on-going dialogue about current topics and exemplary practice, and encourage reflective thinking.
What are Text-Based Seminars? The Center for Comprehensive School Reform and Improvement describes the Text-Based Seminar as a 45-60 minute discussion in which "a team examines an issue in a short article or excerpt from a book that is related to teaching and learning and then talks about it together." The purpose of the discussion is not to persuade but rather to deepen the participants' understanding of the issue or practice. Once teachers become comfortable with the protocol, it can easily be used in the classroom with their students.

How do we begin? As the Instructional Coach you initially take on the role of facilitator for the discussion. Your responsibilities include:

  • Identifying relevant text that will either address the observed needs of the school or the interests of the faculty

  • Creating a framing question (Essential Question) on which the discussion will center

  • Creating follow-up questions (Key Questions) that will encourage the participants to raise their level of thinking and increase their understanding

  • Refocusing the participants when they stray from the text

Why have ground rules? They help facilitate the smooth flow of discussion. The Center for Collaborative Education (2003) offers the following suggestions:

  • Listen actively.

  • Build on what others say.

  • Expose/suspend your assumptions.

  • Do not step on others' talk. Silence and pauses are OK.

  • Emphasize clarification, amplification, and implications of ideas.

  • Converse directly with each other, not through the facilitator.

  • Let the conversation flow without raising hands, as much as possible.                                                                                                                                                                                                              

  • Watch your air time for how often you speak and how much you say when you speak.

  • Make references to the text, and encourage others to do the same.

Using this protocol will also give the coach an opportunity to model the Acquisition Lesson. The Lesson might look something like this.

Acceleration/Previewing

Three to five days prior to the scheduled discussion, distribute a copy of the article or text that will be discussed. This will give participants an opportunity to look over the information. (NOTE: Since this may be the first time for many of them, start with something fun...maybe a couple of Learning-Focused Connections Newsletters.)

Acquisition Lesson

Essential Question:  Pose a framing question that will set the focus for the discussion. Make sure the question is both relevant and clear and encourages them to deepen their understanding.

Assessment Prompts:  Create a few additional questions that can be used to assess their level of understanding. These questions will be used periodically to maintain the focus and provided additional feedback.

Activating Strategy:  Give participants about ten minutes to go back through the text and make notes about anything that made an impression, caused them to think, or generated questions.

Teaching Strategy:  (20 minutes)  Review the ground rules for the discussion. To begin the conversation, have each participant take turns reading aloud a sentence or passage that spoke to them. They should reference the page number, allow time for others to find it, and then give the paragraph. The facilitator may want to refer back to the Essential Question before the formal discussion begins. Allow the discussion to continue, refocusing as neededand posing additional questions, when either the conversation begins to lag, or there is a need for clarification.

Summarizing:  (5 minutes) Have participants individually identify two to three main points and discuss them with a partner. The Text-Based Seminar allows teams to review current research and safely discuss difficult issues. In some cases you may have teachers who are reluctant to participate. Rotate the facilitator's role among the group members. This practice will encourage them to participate and to become comfortable with to protocol.

For more information about School-Based Coaching check out the Learning-Focused School-Based Coaches Kit. Variations on the Text-Based Seminar may be found by searching the topic.